Itasca County

LANGUAGE

The Census asks questions about language use at home to locate groups of people who speak a language other than English. Their isolation or integration into a primarily English speaking community can be determined by their ability to speak English proficiently.

Language Spoken at Home, 1990-2000

1990

2000

Number

Percent

Number

Percent

Only English

36,536

95.74%

40,103

96.22%

Spanish

183

0.48%

335

0.80%

Other Indo-European*

853

2.24%

624

1.50%

Asian Language**

46

0.12%

98

0.24%

Other

542

1.42%

520

1.25%

Total Population Age 5+

38,160

100.00%

41,680

100.00%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000

Language Spoken at Home:

Number

Percent

Spanish

107

31.94%

Other Indo-European*

138

22.12%

Asian Language**

46

46.94%

Other Language

78

15.00%

Total

369

0.89%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990

Language Spoken at Home:

Number

Percent

Spanish

24

13.11%

Other Indo-European*

182

21.34%

Asian Language**

23

50.00%

Other Language

104

19.19%

Total

333

0.87%

* "Other Indo-European" excludes English and Spanish. "Indo-European" is not synonymous with "European." French, German, Hindi, and Persian are all classified as Indo-European. Hungarian, on the other hand, is lumped into "Other Language."

** "Asian Language" includes languages indigenous to Asia and Pacific islands areas that are not also Indo-European languages. Chinese, Japanese, Telugu, and Hawaiian are all classified here.

Also note that ability to speak English "very well" is based on the self-assessment of those responding to Census questions, not on a test of language ability.